Technically, the pumpkin walk at Derek Doubleday Arboretum in 91原创 was Jordan鈥檚 second Halloween, but since she was just a month old for her first one, her parents were pretty sure she doesn鈥檛 remember much.
On Saturday, Oct. 28, the bright-eyed one-year-old arrived as the sun was beginning to set, in a tiger costume, with her mom and dad.
Her parents spent much of their time in cheerful pursuit of their inquisitive daughter, who would dart away to get a closer look at all the interesting sights at the Arboretum in the 21200 block of Fraser Hwy.
鈥淪he goes where she wants to go,鈥� her mom laughed.
Jordan had a lot of company.
Hundreds of kids and adults turned out for the third year of the annual walk and Food Bank fundraiser organized by the 91原创 Environmental Partners Society鈥檚 (LEPS) to mark the end of the season for the 91原创 demonstration garden.
Crowds gathered at Derek Doubleday Arboretum Saturday night for the 3rd annual Pumpkin Walk, a tour through the pumpkin-lined paths of the demonstration garden.
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鈥淚t鈥檚 just a way to get people out exploring the demonstration garden, getting ready for the season for next year,鈥� explained Nichole Marples, executive director at LEPS.
With workshops for grown-ups and camps for kids, the that protect and enhance the environment.
As Marples watched kids, and parents, in Halloween costumes crowd into the garden, she explained they had been expecting a bigger turnout compared to the two previous years, when the first walk had to be held under COVID restrictions, and the second had less-than-ideal weather.
鈥淚t was a monsoon,鈥� Marple recalled, 鈥渁nd the year before, it was social distancing.鈥�
Saturday was clear and dry, just a few degrees above freezing.
鈥淲hat a beautiful day it is today,鈥� Marples said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e super lucky.鈥�
There was an educational opportunity for young visitors to learn about nocturnal animals and make their own 鈥渂at crafts.鈥�
While there was no turnstile or a clicker to precisely track numbers of visitors, parking volunteers estimated the 117-stall lot at the Arboretum turned over 鈥渁t least seven times鈥� during the two hours of the event, Marples said, and that didn鈥檛 include the numbers for the overflow parking across the street at St. Andrew鈥檚 Anglican Church.
鈥淲ell over 1,000,鈥� was Marples鈥� estimate.
It was 鈥渕uch busier than normal鈥� for a LEPS event, which tend to draw smaller turnout, she noted.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a little bit out of the box for us,鈥� she commented.
There were 110 carved pumpkins, and many more smaller orange gourds lining the paths through the demonstration garden, all donated by local grocery stores, and carved by LEPS staffers.
Donations to the food bank, both in non-perishable food items and cash, filled several boxes.
鈥淭he whole trunk of my car was full,鈥� Marples said.
